1. Field
This invention generally relates to golf, specifically to providing a golf course with an immobile apparatus fixed at ground-level by compression of ground for holding a golf club in an upright position.
2. Prior Art
Club selection in golf is an integral part of the game. During any round of golf, a golfer will inevitably find themselves with more than one club in hand. Whether it be in the tee box of a par 3, in a sand trap, around a green, or on a green, it is common for a golfer to have more than one club in hand while standing over a ball making a decision on the shot to be played. Once the club of choice has been determined, a golfer needs to discard the remaining club(s). For the most part, the discarding of club(s) has equated to placing the golf club(s) on the ground. This practice has the following negative consequences: golf clubs being left behind and the time-consuming need to retrieve forgotten clubs; golf clubs being lost and the costly need to replace lost clubs; golf club grips becoming wet and the need to dry the grips; golf clubs being hit by balls in play and the need to replace one's golf ball in original position; constant bending to gather clubs lying on the ground and the battle with fatigue and risk of injury. Extensive prior art for resolving the practice of placing golf clubs on the ground fall into two main categories: (1) providing a apparatus to elevate a club off the ground and (2) providing a stand to which a club may lean against or be attached.
Prior art that elevate the club off the ground include:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,581—Dec. 31, 1991-William Boberg—A prop for spacing a handgrip of a golf club from the ground such that when the golf club is laid thereupon, the handgrip remains dry and clean, is provided.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,704,847—Jan. 6, 1998—Edward Glennon—A one-piece rectangular card-like member formed of a flexible plastic material has a plurality of concave notches formed in side and end edges of the card for receiving a shaft of a golf club therein to support the grip end of the club off the ground when the card is extending vertically.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,315,133—B1 Nov. 13, 2001—James Franke—A golf club support casing for supporting the grips of golf clubs above the ground.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,964,618—Filed Apr. 19, 2004—Roger Allen Klein—A rigid or semi-rigid, one-piece, shaped, planar golf club shaft support is provided for supporting the grip of a golf club above wet ground and/or grass on the golf course. The support has at least one lead-in entry and circular cutout positioned opposite an essentially flat base edge for receiving a golf club shaft. When the support is placed on the ground with the cutout containing the shaft upward and the base edge sitting on the ground, the grip end of the shaft is securely supported above the wet ground and/or grass and stays dry, and the club head rests on the ground to form a very stable support system that cannot be overturned or dislodged easily.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,611,421 B2—Nov. 3, 2009—Samuel Brewer, Edward Kline—A golf club handgrip elevation casing is provided which maintains the handgrip of the golf club off of the ground when the club is placed on the ground. The invention includes an opening in a receiving section into which the club is placed and includes a gripping section for holding golf club.
Prior art that provide a stand for golf clubs include the following.
Design Patents of ornamental design for a golf club holder:    Patent D472598 Golf Club Holder Apr. 1, 2003 Richard Lawrence    Patent D476479 Tube Holder for Golf Putter Jul. 1, 2003 Vance Bailey    Patent D486875 Auxiliary Golf Club Holder Feb. 17, 2004 Franklin C. Hale and James W. Austin    Patent D505174 Golf Club Support May 15, 2005 Robert Allen Thomas Sr    Patent D520098 Golf Club Holder May 2, 2006 William D. Lemoine    Patent D529977 Golf Club Holder Oct. 10, 2006 William Chappell    Patent D530768 Golf Club and Towel Holder Oct. 24, 2006 Clair T. Rood    Patent D564614 Golf Club Apparatus Mar. 18, 2008 Nicholas Valiante    Patent D600300 Self Standing Golf Support Sep. 15, 2009 Jonathan E. Wilson II
Utility Patents:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,669,514—Sep. 23, 1997—Joseph Massetti—A compact holder for golf clubs which can be easily taken apart and stored in a player's pocket when not in use. When used by the player, the golf clubs are firmly held by the holder and can be used in a standing up position with the golf club heads resting on the ground or with a spike.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,471,055—Filed May 24, 2002—Richard E. Kwiecienski—A golf club carrier includes a central support that forms one of three legs that support the carrier when in use. The two other legs are provided by bending a flexible and resilient rod at its mid-point and pivotally interconnecting the rod at that mid-point to an upper end of the central support.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,572,487—Jun. 3, 2003—Thomas Ruff—A unitary golf club rest includes a golf club support at one end and a turf piercing element at the other end. A foot press is situated between the two ends. The golf club support is roughly V-shaped with a cushioned surface, and also acts as a handle for the golf club rest.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,962,536—Nov. 8, 2005—Jeffrey Hall and Paul Hebert—A compact golf accessory which may function as a cigar holder, golf club rest or golf ball retriever.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,854,664—Filed Apr. 16, 2009—Ronald Comrie—A golf club supporting accessory comprising a stake wherein the stake has a pointed end for insertion into ground; wherein the stake has a grip about a top end; wherein the grip has a hook upon which a golf club grip is able to interact in order to support the golf club.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,841,951—Nov. 30, 2010—Gary Kushner—A golf club caddy apparatus allows for the convenient transportation and support, of golf clubs and golf accessories around a golf course putting green or practice tee. The apparatus retains one or more golf clubs in a secure and convenient manner to facilitate play around a putting green of practice tee.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,854,664—Dec. 21, 2010—Stephen Blau—The golf club supporting accessory that supports a golf club when not in use and includes a cigar holder, towel holder, and Velcro strip for hanging a glove. The golf club supporting accessory has a stake as the main frame, which is struck into the ground.
The above aforementioned inventions, albeit all useful and effective, still collectively have disadvantages to be resolved. These issues include: casing needing to be transported with golfer; casing having a sharp, pointed, grounding mechanism that is dangerous; casing needing to be setup and/or placed on golf course; casing needing to be attached and/or stored in golf bag; casing requiring bending to pick up; and casing requiring purchase by golfer.
Thus, several advantages of our apparatus include: apparatus is an immobile structure fixed below ground-level by the compression of the ground of the golf course and therefore available for all golfers; apparatus has no sharp mechanisms that golfer needs to carry and insert into ground; apparatus does not have to be setup by the golfer to be utilized; apparatus does not have to be attached to or carried in a golf bag; apparatus requires no bending or fatigue developing motions; and apparatus is of no expense to the golfer.